Civilian
by Rayet
Summary: Sometimes, Sakura wished she weren't a ninja. But disguising herself as a civilian doesn't prove easy, and all too soon she finds her worlds colliding. Kakasaku
1. Prologue

They carried him through the woods on a stretcher, as she straddled his chest and covered his eye with two glowing hands. She was so absorbed in her task that she barely spoke, except occasionally to criticise the stretcher-bearers' unsteadiness over the rough terrain. The circumstances weren't ideal for such a complicated procedure as the one she was currently performing, but as they were still several miles from Konoha they had been forced to make do. The eye was one of the few left of its kind, and it was in danger.

"Can't you just take it out of him?" one young ninja had asked. "No sharingan is worth the pain he's going through."

The pink-haired medic hadn't even looked up. "If I thought he could live without this eye, it would already be gone. But I'm sure that even if I removed the damn thing to save his life, Hatake Kakashi would never forgive me. So instead I have to just sit here and be brilliant as I try to stop it from killing him." A drop of sweat rolled down the tip of her nose and fell onto Hatake Kakashi's chest, leaving a dark spot on his shirt.

Haruno Sakura was tired and uncomfortable and out of her depth, but as she probed deeper into the nerves and vessels surrounding her ex-sensei's eye, she knew she had to be more controlled than ever. There was already so much chakra flowing in and around the sharingan that adding her own could easily do more harm than good if she wasn't careful.

The semi-conscious jounin's body suddenly convulsed with pain, almost toppling Sakura off her precarious perch. She swore under her breath, trying to recover the loose threads of chakra trailing from her patient. _Only one chance, _she thought to herself for the hundredth time. _Only one chance to save them both. _Feeling around with her chakra, she was able to get a clearer picture of the curious eye. A normal eye needed very little chakra, and as such most people only had one chakra vessel per eye. But those ninja with an optical bloodline limit such as Uchihas and Hyuugas had a secondary chakra vessel that ran along the optic nerve. This helped to regulate the flow and prevent overloading.

Sakura had read about the dōjutsu kekkei genkai from a fifty year-old medical journal. In the same chapter was a handwritten footnote, just a few sentences outlining a newer case in which a sharingan eye had been successfully transplanted into a person outside the bloodline; and hence lacking the extra chakra vessel. Basically, it was like having opposite lanes of traffic on a one-way street. There was a greater strain on the existing outlet, leaving the eye constantly activated and at greater risk of injury due to overuse. She recognised Tsunade's handwriting and Kakashi's unique circumstances, and had burned the information into her memory just in case.

Unfortunately, the time had come for her to use what she had learned. Her chakra had reached the overexerted vessel, and she could feel how much trauma it had experienced as a result of the recent battle. Kakashi's chakra was flooding to the eye, and very little could flow back out against the current. The resulting pressure was the cause of his agony, and if it continued to build then the sudden release of so much raw energy could prove fatal. Carefully, she sent out the tiniest amount of her own chakra into the vessel, moving against the current. If she gradually redirected the flow, she could safely drain the excess chakra from the sharingan without damaging the entire circulatory system. Blessing the gods for her natural control, she pushed a little harder.

Then something happened. Perhaps someone carrying the stretcher had stumbled, or perhaps Kakashi had shifted slightly beneath her. Whatever the reason, Sakura's focus slipped. It was only the briefest of moments, but it was enough for her thread of chakra to weaken. Instead of pushing back Kakashi's chakra, it got caught up in the flow and flushed back into the sharingan. Trying not to panic, the medic strengthened her tie on the thread and dragged it back out along the vessel.

Almost at once she felt the difference. Just as the copy nin's chakra felt different immediately after being filtered through the sharingan, so too did hers. It was like it had been dipped in the pool of trapped memories inside the eye, soaking up their essence. There were no concrete images or remembered hand seals, just an overwhelming feeling of horror and a dizzying tincture of bloodlust. She cried out in shock and nearly severed Kakashi's optic nerve with her chakra scalpel. Ignoring the others' concerned questions, she examined the little she could see of Kakashi's face. He did not appear to have been affected. If anything, his condition seemed slightly improved. His breathing was no longer ragged and his heartbeat was slowing back down to its normal pace.

She smoothed the hair back from his clammy forehead and tried to muster the courage to examine his eye once more. Konoha couldn't be much further away. Once they arrived, there would be Tsunade and a whole team of medics more experienced than she to help him. If he could hold on for a little while longer, she wouldn't have to risk feeling like that again. But even as the thought to do nothing entered her mind she dismissed it. If she didn't make sure Kakashi was really okay and something happened to him later, she would never forgive herself. Closing her eyes and mustering her last reserves, she swept her chakra over his sharingan, entering the vessel further down from the opening. The current seemed to be stabilising, moving away from the eye. Withdrawing her own chakra must have been enough to reverse the flow of his.

"Um, miss Haruno?" the same young ninja began tentatively. "Your nose is bleeding."

He watched the medic draw her gloved hand impatiently across her face before collapsing gently forward. For a brief moment he assumed she had fainted at the sight of her own blood, but a quick examination from one of the stretcher-bearers revealed that exhaustion was the culprit. After five hours of treating wounded ninja and one particularly tricky sharingan, she was finally free to rest. The copy nin did not seem to be in any immediate danger or discomfort, so they saw no point in waking or moving her. She didn't make much difference to the load they carried; and even if she did, it was thanks to her that most of them were able to walk at all. The young ninja thought the woman would look more peaceful in sleep than she did in the field. But when he snuck a furtive look through the rosy strands of hair covering her face, she seemed more troubled than ever.


	2. Wake up

Waves of boiling red sea were crashing over him, the foam stinging his eyes and filling his mouth and nose with water. He struggled against the tide with all his strength, but his strength was ebbing and he soon found himself being pulled further and further from the shore. Each cry for help was quickly stifled by the water rushing to his lungs, and soon he gave up on breathing altogether. He tried to remember why he was stranded in this red ocean, but his memories were sluggish and took a long time to surface. There had been a battle. With the acceptance of this simple fact came the realisation that the water surrounding and filling him was not cool and peaceful, but hot and cloying. It was blood that he sank through, an ocean of scarlet blood.

He clamped down on the urge to panic, instead forcing his hazy mind to realise the impossibility of his situation. He must be caught in somebody's genjutsu, for oceans of blood were not part of his world. Instead, he forced himself to think on the things that were. They started simple; his mask, his country. And they finished with the people he knew and fought alongside. Surely one of them would be coming to break him free of this illusory prison soon? Thin, white-hot threads of agony were shooting thought his optic nerve and the pain was becoming unbearable. There was a building pressure in his chest, as though the blood were forcing its way down his throat. He couldn't breathe, his thoughts were little more than white noise, and his eye was definitely on fire. He could feel the surrounding flesh melting away from it like candle wax from the wick.

He had forgotten that help was supposed to be coming. He had forgotten the relatively peaceful life beyond this torture. He had forgotten his own name.

"_Kakashi."_

With a jolt, Kakashi was flung back into consciousness. Suddenly he was able to feel the coarse, heavy sheets someone had placed over him, and smell the horrible scent of antiseptic and misery. He could hear far-off voices and the occasional beep of an instrument. It was clear that he was in a hospital of some sort; but he couldn't tell where. The last thing he could force himself to remember was fighting back a surge of rogue ninja bent on destroying one of the Fire Country's smaller villages. Was that where he was now? What about his team? Were they hospitalised too, or worse? The need to confirm his situation grew too much and he sat up, opening his eyes.

At least he tried to.

His eyelids didn't seem to be responding, and the harder he tried to wrench them apart, the more they stung. The blackness persisted and he lifted a heavy hand to feel his face. The entire top half was wrapped in thick, gauzy bandages. It explained why his eyes wouldn't open, but left him unsure what he would see if he could. Was he blind? Had he lost the sharingan? The very thought of losing something so precious, the last lifeline to his old teammates, sliced into his shock like a kunai. He could feel himself thrashing, hear the trill of an alarm as the drone of voices grew closer. He had to get the bandages off and test his eyesight. Then he had to get away from this place as quickly as his strength would allow.

Part of him, the controlled, professional part of him, tried to calm his terror and make him see reason. But if this blindness were permanent, there would be little need for professionalism. For most ninja, such an injury meant instant retirement. For Kakashi, that would be akin to a death sentence. He tugged at the bandages, trying to find a loose end to unravel. But his hands were clumsy and he seemed to be doing more harm than good. He snarled in a mixture of pain and frustration, groping around blindly for something sharp to aid him.

A hand closed over his, and his instinctive reaction was to strike out at the unseen danger. There was a sharp cry as his free hand made contact with the stranger's jaw. But instead of letting go the person increased their grip, forcing Kakashi back down on the bed.

"Tsunade's on her way," someone said over the top of the machines. He wasn't sure if they were talking to him or not, but at the mention of the Hokage's name his terror abated slightly. He must have made it back to Konoha then, which meant he was among allies. After a moment Kakashi could hear the signature click of heeled feet and the hand holding his slid away.

"Hatake Kakashi," In response to the Hokage's booming voice, the jounin went still.

"You're in Konoha, and you're perfectly safe," she reassured him, and he inclined his head slightly to show that he understood.

"Your squad was assisting the Brick Village when it was ambushed by an additional squad of rogue-nin. Though you overpowered them eventually, some of you sustained injuries. You, in particular, are lucky to be alive."

"And the Sharingan?" Kakashi pressed, annoyed at how slowly Tsunade was getting to the point. "What's wrong with my eyes?"

"You overused your Sharingan to the point of damaging your chakra vessel and surrounding optic nerve. The team medic was able to reverse most of the damage on the way back to Konoha, but mostly it needs rest and time to heal."

"But it _will _heal?"

Tsunade paused for a moment, and Kakashi bit his lip in frustration. Finally she answered him. "The Sharingan is intact, but still very weak. If it had continued to build pressure on your chakra vessel, it might have killed you. At the very least you would have permanently destroyed your optic nerves and lost your sight completely. Luckily, you were in good hands." Kakashi heard someone's feet shift slightly near the side of his bed.

"I'm telling you all this _now_ because I want you to properly understand the delicacy of your situation before we remove the bandages." At this, Kakashi's head snapped up eagerly.

"You mean I can take the bandages off straightaway? Will I be able to see?" He slid forward eagerly.

"Hey! I told you all that so you'd take it easy!" Kakashi didn't need his vision to know that Tsunade was pissed-off, and he tried to look apologetic. "Sorry Hokage-sama. I promise to take it easy, just as soon as I have these bandages off."

A few minutes later and the pressure around his head had subsided greatly. There was still a great deal of gauze packed around his left eye, but his normal one was free at last. Slowly, he tested his vision. The curtains had been drawn and the lights switched off, yet it still felt like staring at the sun. Everything was blurry and over-bright, but it was improving every second. Finally one yellow-and-green shape became discernible as the Hokage, who seemed to be watching him intently. Then she grinned, and the other blurry figures sighed in apparent relief.

"Thank you," Kakashi told her, equally relieved.

"Oh don't thank _me_," she told him, waving her hand dismissively, "Without your field medic you'd be dead long before you reached me." She nodded to someone on Kakashi's right, who stepped very slightly closer. The person was mostly just a pale cream blur like the rest of the hospital, but he recognised the shock of pink hair easily enough.

"Sakura," he acknowledged. The pink blur twitched.

"Correct. She saved your life out there, and risked her own to do it. Funny way to repay her," she added, "giving her a black eye."

"What?" Kakashi yelped at the absurd accusation. "I never-"

"It was when you first woke up, Kakashi-sensei," the pink-haired girl stepped forward now, explaining hurriedly. "You were disoriented and panicked. You didn't know who I was. It wasn't your fault, it was mine," she placed a hand on his arm, and the familiar gesture triggered a flash of realisation.

"Oh kami, I hit someone before, didn't I? I hit- I hit _you_, Sakura."

Tsunade huffed. "Finally the penny drops. Now, do you think you're going to be able to control these violent urges, or do I have to find you a private room?"

Kakashi glanced to his side, but of course the other hospital bed was just a distant smudge of cream and silver. "Who's in here with me?"

Tsunade placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, who looked decidedly sheepish. "This idiot, who broke practically every rule as a medic trying to save your sorry ass."


	3. Get Well Soon

Ino knocked softly on the hospital room door. After a quiet "come in," she nudged it open and stepped through. Sunlight filtered through the crisp white curtains and warmed the otherwise pale face of her best friend. She was sitting up in bed, reading a well-thumbed novel and looking bored out of her mind. When she saw Ino Sakura grinned and threw the book down among a large pile of 'Get Well Soon' cards, but the blonde medic couldn't return the smile until she had ascertained the damage for herself. Dropping a bouquet of purple and pink flowers on the patient's lap, she flicked through the file hanging from the end of her bed.

"Severe exhaustion, dehydration, muscular fatigue, _near-fatal_ chakra depletion," she read aloud as Sakura admired the flowers and tried not to look too guilty. "Haruno, you idiot."

"It's not like I did it on purpose," Sakura defended, "I just didn't have as much chakra as I thought I did."

Ino huffed. "You have the best chakra control of anyone our age, as you love to remind me. You always know _exactly _how much you have, and how much you're using." She took the blooms back from her, arranging them in the water jug with expert care. "That's why Tsunade-shishou is so mad at you; because you broke the medic's code by risking your own life."

"How do you know Shishou's mad at me?" Sakura frowned, "I thought you only just got back from the Hidden Rain?"

"Sakura, I don't need to be a medic to spot the recent bruise on your cheek," she tapped the same area on her own face. "She usually puts off hitting us until we're out of the hospital."

"Oh this?" Sakura's hand flew up self-consciously to cover the purplish smudge. "No, this wasn't the Hokage. It was… an accident." She glanced at the opposite bed, where its occupant lay sleeping.

Ino followed her gaze. She hadn't paid much attention the other patient in the room. The part of his face that wasn't covered in bandages was obscured by the top of his blanket. But she recognised the silvery mop of hair well enough, and she gave a low whistle.

"Is that Kakashi-sensei? He looks terrible." His normally flawless physique was showing the signs of injury and inaction, and there were deep bags under his one good eye. Also, where Sakura could have opened her own greeting card business with the amount of coloured paper on her bedside table, Kakashi's was bare but for a hastily-drawn frog on what looked like an old Ichiraku ramen menu. Ino didn't need to read the inside to know who it was from.

A thought occurred to her. "Hey, he's the teammate you nearly killed yourself over, isn't he?" She turned her pale eyes on Sakura, who blushed.

"Don't say it like that," she protested, "I've already gotten the lecture from Shishou. He was on the brink of death himself, and if you remember I think you'll find that rule _one _of the medic's code is that we don't give up on a teammate as long as there's still breath in our body!"

The silence that followed this outburst was punctured by a rustle from the opposite bed and the girls froze; but Kakashi simply rolled over and lay still once more. Exhaling, Sakura turned back to Ino. "Hey, you want to get out of here? The usual place is probably empty at the moment."

As the door closed on the sterile room, Kakashi's eye opened and narrowed. He would have to remember to ask Tsunade about the medic's code.

A slightly chilly breeze rolled over the hospital roof, and the girls tightened their blankets around them. They had stripped Sakura's bed of its linen and set up a makeshift picnic with the remains of her lunch. Ino munched meditatively on a bag of apple slices while Sakura pulled the lid off a pudding cup.

"So where were we?" she said, picking up her spoon, "I think I was yelling at you for criticising my judgement?"

Ino snorted. "That sounds about right. Though in my defence, I wasn't really criticising. I can't say I wouldn't have done the exact same thing in your place. Kami knows I tried to."

Sakura glanced up at her friend. "You did everything you could for Asuma-sensei," she told her quietly.

The blonde smiled sadly. "I know. We were way too young and he was way too badly injured. I've come to terms with that since then." She dipped an apple slice in Sakura's pudding, ignoring her friend's repulsed look. "That's why I'm glad you could save Kakashi-sensei. It shows we've grown up, all of us. We're old enough to protect the things we care about now."

The pink-haired girl chewed her lip, trying to organise the stream of thoughts in her head. "Then why don't I feel any older than I was in Team Seven? Why do I feel so terrified, even when I know Kakashi's okay? I worry about him, and I worry about Naruto too. He's getting to be so strong and he's starting to attract a lot of unwanted attention because of it. I promised myself I'd protect him, but what can I do against people like Pein and Madara? I was powerless against them. And I worry about Sai of course, because Sai doesn't seem to worry about himself. I have no idea what he must be going through right now with everything, but I can only ever guess at how he feels. And I worry about- I _still _worry about…"

She buried her face in her hands. She wasn't ashamed to cry in front of Ino, but she didn't like doing it either.

Ino wrapped her arm around her friend. "Apple slice?" she offered, and was rewarded with a small smile.

"I'm sorry," Sakura groaned, "I just don't know what's happening to me lately. Ever since I fixed the sharingan, I've been feeling terrible. I can hardly sleep, and even when I do I get woken up by Kakashi."

"Kakashi?" Ino frowned.

Sakura nodded. "He's started talking in his sleep. A lot of it doesn't make sense, but every now and then he'll say something, a place or a name I've never even heard of, and suddenly my heart starts racing and I feel like I do in the middle of a battle. There's this massive adrenaline rush, but I know there isn't any danger. It's driving me crazy but I don't want to change rooms, because how do I explain why?"

Ino rested her chin on her hands, wishing she had Shikamaru's problem-solving skills. Even after Sasuke had left the village, or after one of Naruto's various near-death experiences, her friend had never seemed this shaken. "This is something else, isn't it? Something new," she guessed, confirming the truth of her words in Sakura's expression.

"When I was fixing the Sharingan, part of my chakra, it- went in," and suddenly she was recounting the whole terrifying experience. "At first it felt like something new, but I realised that I've actually felt like that before," she confessed, hugging her blanket closer, "maybe not so… condensed, but the same sort of potential. In certain battles- the worst ones- I've felt like I almost could enjoy it. Killing them, I mean," she gave Ino a sidelong glance, as though trying to gauge her reaction. "I know that's a terrible thing for a medic to think, but it's true. I just-"

But Ino raised her hand and cut off her friend's explanation. "Idiot," she told her, smiling as Sakura's eyes widened in surprise, "every ninja feels that sometimes. We lose people. We avenge people. We get caught up in the moment. We see humanity at its very worst. Of course it's hard to stay impartial about what we do; but our ability to do it anyway is what separates us from civilians."

Sakura sighed ruefully. "When did you get to be so wise?"

Ino laughed. "We've all changed since our academy days, huh? Even Naruto." She grinned, remembering the little blond terror who used to get into trouble with her teammates and act madly in love with her friend.

"We sure have," Sakura agreed, equally fondly, "though sometimes I wish we hadn't. Life was so much easier then. We could almost believe we were separate from it all; like peacetime would last forever and we'd never really have to risk anything big. Even when I visit The Blossom I can't relax anymore. I'm not the daughter of the owner, I'm a ninja who happens to eat there." The Blossom was the restaurant belonging to Sakura's mother, and it was in the predominantly-civilian area of town. Ino could see how Sakura might have trouble blending in nowadays.

But she also knew something that might help her. It would mean giving up her best-kept secret and risking everything, but it was the exact antidote her friend needed for her stress; and in any case, it might be nice having someone else in on the act. "Sakura…" she began, her voice deadly serious. "I have a confession to make."


	4. First Impressions

**A/N: GUYS I AM ****SO**** SORRY ABOUT HOW LONG THIS IS TAKING. DON'T WORRY, I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN THIS FIC AND I FULLY INTEND TO GET MY ACT TOGETHER AND UPDATE MORE OFTEN NOW. SO PLEASE DO SUBSCRIBE TO THIS FIC IF YOU'RE ENJOYING IT, BECAUSE IT'S NOT OVER YET.**

**ONE MORE THING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU READ ON: "ICHI" "NI" AND "SAN" ARE THE JAPANESE WORDS FOR "ONE" "TWO" AND "THREE" RESPECTIVELY.**

Sakura was relieved to hear that she would be discharged only two days after Ino's visit. Ever since the blonde had revealed her secret, the hospital room had seemed duller than ever. Kakashi continued to sleep most of the time; partly exhausted, partly ashamed to even look at her wan appearance and rapidly-healing bruise. She had tried to reassure him of her well-being and engage him in lighter conversation, but the attempts inevitably fell flat. Being stuck together without a mission to discuss or Naruto and Sai to break the tension brought about an uncomfortable realisation: they knew nothing about each other.

Sure, they knew the superficial facts that anyone could read on their public records, and they had years of shared memories of missions. But their background information and various little quirks had rarely been discussed; and to start now, after roughly a decade of knowing one another, seemed far too awkward. Kakashi had always been less-than forthcoming with personal details, and had made it clear from his very first encounter with Team Seven that he didn't much care about other peoples' either. It was a sad thing for Sakura to realise, but unfortunately it seemed too late to repair the rift in their relationship.

Tsunade was giving her a last-minute lecture as she packed her things.

"Now, when I say you've got two-week's leave for recovery, I mean for you to _actually _recover. Don't overuse you chakra. Don't use it at all, if you can help it."

"Not even to train?" Sakura asked, glancing up from her bag. Truthfully, it wasn't training she had in mind; but Tsunade didn't need to know that.

Her mentor scowled. "Just focus on getting your stamina back up before you go wasting all of it in exercises. Overexert yourself now and you'll just end up straight back here again."

Kakashi sat up in the opposite bed. "Hokage-sama, can I leave too if I promise I won't come back?"

Sakura laughed but Tsunade's scowl deepened as she turned on the jounin. "I'm not keeping you in hospital because I enjoy hearing you complain about how bored you are, Kakashi. You are a _patient_, and therefore will stay here _exactly _as long as I deem necessary. You're lucky you're alive getting this treatment at all. Perhaps you could use this time to contemplate that."

Kakashi's head drooped in a respectable impression of a kicked puppy. "You're right, Tsunade-sama. I should be grateful for everything the medics have done for me." He glanced at Sakura, who immediately regretted all her previous frustration over him. She might not know much about her former sensei, but she did know how much he hated hospitals. And after her experience with the sharingan, she felt she might understand why. He wasn't a medic, after all; his usefulness ended at the door, but the crisis didn't. She wondered how many people Kakashi had seen enter the hospital and not come out again, with nothing he could do to prevent it.

"Don't worry Kakashi," she smiled cheerfully, "I'll come visit you tomorrow if you like. I'll bring you something to read." Her silver-haired captain regarded her curiously, perhaps wondering about her sudden attitude-change. She had been practically jumping at the opportunity to leave the little room behind, and now she was promising to return the very next day.

"Thank you, Sakura-chan," he gave his eye-crinkle smile that Sakura could never fully believe in, but she simply waved goodbye. Clearly he wasn't expecting to see her again, but she would prove she was true to her word.

"Damn it!"

Sakura stood in front of her full-length bedroom mirror, waving away the smoke from her most recently-dissipated henge. She had been practising for so long that her tiny one-bedroom flat looked like it was on fire, and she could hardly see her reflection through the haze.

Cracking a window to let the smoke out, she re-read the scrap of paper Ino had given her. Hastily written in the blonde's handwriting was the following list:

**Ino's tips for creating a civilian henge:**

**1. Change the most important features, like eye and hair colour and hair length and style, but don't change every little detail; things like height and face shape end up being too difficult to make consistent.**

**2. Don't make your disguise stand out too much. Keep your alter-ego simple and convincing, just like you would on a mission.**

**3. Practise it until you can do it the same way every time.**

**4. Don't leave or return home wearing the henge. Find somewhere neutral and private to change, like an alley or public bathroom. That way nobody can link it back to you.**

**5. DON'T TELL ANYBODY WHO YOU REALLY ARE. If anyone finds out, we won't be able to keep doing this (it's my secret too, don't forget!). Once you've mastered the civilian henge, destroy this piece of paper. Good luck, Forehead.**

Ino had written it down after explaining her secret to coping with ninja life. Sakura had stared, open-mouthed, as her friend formed the seals for a henge-no jutsu and temporarily became a brown-eyed girl with freckles and short auburn hair. She admitted to donning the disguise and pretending to be a civilian on her free evenings. Every now and then, usually after a long mission when Ino had been working non-stop, she liked to adopt the alter-ego and act like any other person for a few hours. She'd fashioned a name that wasn't an old clan title, created memories that didn't revolve around fighting and training, even made some civilian friends; all of which helped to ease the burden that ninjutsu could sometimes become.

Sakura's first reaction had been surprise, then a feeling of betrayal. Why had Ino felt the need to lie to her best friend- to everyone?

"How long have you been doing this?" she asked, and the hurt was detectable in her tone.

Ino had been quick to reassure her. "When I started last year, I only did it once or twice a month, if that. It was mostly just for fun, when my free time didn't coincide with anyone else's. It's only within the last few weeks that I've started getting serious about it. I would have told you sooner, but I- well, I guess I was ashamed that I'd come to rely on my civilian identity so much, when you and the others seemed to cope so well on your own." She ran an anxious hand through her long hair, and Sakura reflected on her words. Even though her parents were civilians, that lifestyle had seemed closed off since her first day at the ninjutsu academy. If what Ino said was true, then it would actually be possible to get away with a few hours of peace and normality… and wasn't that exactly what she had been craving?

And that was how she found herself practising her henge no jutsu in her bedroom that evening. She'd read Ino's instructions a dozen times already, but her studious nature wouldn't allow her to destroy the slip of paper until her disguise was perfect. She had an idea of how she wanted to look in her mind, but creating it was proving trickier than she thought. It was different on missions, when other people could be copied outright. But this disguise had to be an entirely new creation, similar enough to herself that it would stay consistent, but different enough that nobody would notice.

She'd thought Ino's second rule would be easy; after all, she'd spent her whole life 'standing out' and had no intention of keeping her bubblegum-pink hair. But once it had been changed to an unassuming black-brown, she'd realised what a corruptive power henge-no-jutsu could be. All the little things she disliked about herself, she suddenly had the power to change. More than once she'd had to fight the temptation to remake herself in the likeness of film stars and feudal princesses.

Eventually she found a henge that stuck; it was practical, easy to repeat, and different enough that not even Ino would know it was her straightaway. Her new dark hair fell down her back in soft waves that she could never naturally achieve. Her emerald eyes were unfortunately too conspicuous and had to be darkened to match her hair. Her height remained the same, though her lean body softened into something expected of a civilian. She stood before the mirror a moment longer, admiring her more feminine looks. Sakura had always loved dressing up and taking care of her appearance, but ever since those scathing remarks about her hair during her first chuunin exam, she been afraid of femininity being labelled as weakness. Hence, the idea of anonymity was oddly freeing. She wondered why she hadn't thought to do this years ago.

Slipping down a dark street as one person and out the other end as someone completely different was a curious sensation. She was right on the unofficial border between ninja and civilian areas. There was no real distinction or prohibition between the two groups; but people were naturally attracted toward those they shared commonalities with. Hence the wide cobbled path she meandered along eventually passed under a wooden red arch into a different-looking part of town. Weapon stores and fast food places morphed into grocery markets and intimate bistros. The nightlife was still as busy as ever, though the pedestrians wore far brighter and less practical clothing. Sakura had considered wearing her own 'special occasion' jewellery her mother had given her, but knew Haruno Takara would have recognised it the instant she walked into The Blossom.

Still, she grinned. It felt better than she'd ever expected, walking along the jewel-bright streets and feeling like she belonged there. Nobody stared at her hair or clothes, or associated her with battle and grief. Her recent anguish melted off her with each step, and the stubborn knot of pain the sharingan had left her was temporarily lost under layers of excitement and joy.

Unfortunately, she had been so worried about being recognised as a ninja that she hadn't considered any other obstacles to enjoying her night. It was several blocks from her destination, as she meandered down a narrow shortcut, that one such obstacle decided to meet her.

Rounding a corner, she found her path blocked by three men standing in a ring. There was a shadowy bundle on the ground between them, and as Sakura watched, it whimpered.

"Now that we've cleared the wax out of your ears, you might be a bit more obliging about answering our questions," the tallest man sneered, leaning forward with his fists raised. "Or do we need to repeat ourselves one more time?" He lunged forward, and Sakura could feel her body moving of its own accord.

"Stop!" she commanded, striding into their midst. She glared at the trio, enraged. They stared back, perhaps wondering why an unarmed woman had been foolhardy enough to interfere. After a moment, the tall man took a step toward her, hands still balled into fists.

Sakura tensed, preparing to meet him with her own surprising strength. Her henge would give her an unexpected advantage- they wouldn't be expecting a civilian to put up much of a fight- and so she continued to maintain it.

The man was almost within striking distance when the shortest of the three called out to him. "That's enough, San. This little mouse doesn't look like she's going to go scurrying back to her hole any time soon." This was obviously their leader. Despite being the smallest, he carried himself with a haughty, princely air. The taller man stopped immediately, though he continued to scowl at Sakura.

"Forgive my friend's rudeness," the leader smiled, but it was predatory and cold, "San has always lacked a gentle touch, especially when it comes to beautiful women. He would simply _love _to pluck the petals off a flower like you." The last man of the group laughed while San growled.

"Ichi-sama, she's seen too much."

"You see what I mean about gentleness?" Ichi sighed, shaking his head. "There was no reason to scare our new friend like that, you know."

"Let the man on the ground go," Sakura finally spoke up, and there was no trace of fear in her voice. Ichi raised his eyebrows in amusement. "Are you going to make us, little mouse?"

"If I have to," she replied, sliding her right foot back into a better fighting stance. She had been analysing the situation from the moment she decided to get involved. Their victim didn't seem too badly injured that he couldn't escape if an opportunity arose, and Sakura's first priority was to ensure that it did. A small part of her was disappointed that her night as a civilian would be over before it even began, but she pushed the thought aside. No matter what disguise she wore, she would always be a kunoichi underneath it.

"So be it," the man shrugged, pulling a long knife from a fold in his shirt. The other man, whose name Sakura didn't know but suspected would be "Ni," began to laugh again.

"Ahem."

The quiet voice came from just behind her and caught Sakura unawares. She spun around to face the newcomer, and when she saw the familiar mop of silver hair, her henge nearly failed from the shock.

Kakashi stood before them, his one visible eye travelling between the men and the girl. "Am I interrupting?"

"As a matter of fact-" the nameless man snapped, before his voice was cut off by Ichi's fist in his gut. As he doubled over wheezing, the other two men watched the jounin warily. Kakashi wore the Konoha forehead protector that clearly labelled him as a shinobi, and the three men must have understood that the tables had quite seriously turned. But Sakura thought there was something deeper in the leader's expression, something closer to hate than fear. The way he stared at Kakashi made her shiver in spite of herself.

Kakashi's attention had been fixed on the trio of troublemakers, but when the young woman trembled, he turned to her in concern.

"It's alright now, miss," he assured her, "you're safe."

There was a rustling noise and before Kakashi's dulled reflexes could respond, the men had run off while his focus was diverted. Within moments there was no trace that they had been there at all. The man lying on the ground had also disappeared.

"You let them get away!" The woman cried in dismay.

Kakashi blinked. He had expected a little more gratitude, considering he had probably saved her life. But shock affected everyone differently, and he had learned to never expect a reward for simply doing the right thing.

"I know. But I expect I'll meet up with them again before too long," his tone was cheerful, but he was determined to make sure that he did, for the sake of the civilians of Konoha. He didn't need to be a mind-reader to know what might have become of the girl if he had arrived just a few minutes too late.

"That was pretty brave of you, standing up to them like that," he told her, and her face grew pale.

"Thanks," she mumbled, suddenly unable to look him in the eye, "but I couldn't really have done anything."

"That's nothing to be ashamed of," he said, "I'm a ninja; I've trained for years to deal with thugs like them." Slowly, not wanting to frighten her, Kakashi took half a step closer. "Are you sure you're alright? I'm no medic, but apparently after something like that your body could go into shock without you even realising."

This made the woman smile, as though he had reminded her of an old joke. He watched her with surprise and increasing concern. "Perhaps I ought to take you to the hospital."

This got Sakura's attention. "No, I'm fine! I'm just a little shaken up I guess." In truth, she had been worrying about Kakashi discovering her true identity; which would have been mortifying after he had been so nice to her. But it seemed without the Sharingan he was no better at identifying her supressed chakra signature than the average shinobi. It was strange to have her old sensei talk to her like she was a stranger (especially a pretty one), and having her own medical advice repeated back to her had been stranger still.

But despite that, it almost felt like she was meeting Hatake Kakashi for the first time. And this time it wasn't some boy-crazy student meeting her elite-but-aloof sensei; it was a man meeting a woman. They were equals, in a way they had never seemed before. Even long after she had outgrown him as a teacher, she still felt as though she were running to catch up to his legend. It had been different with Naruto and Sasuke; she knew Kakashi felt they had surpassed him in ways he had never expected. But she was no clan prodigy or child of prophecy. And so for the longest time she had told herself to forget The Great Copy Nin, because he would never see her the way he saw his other, greater students. It had seemed they would be destined to drift apart for good; but destiny seemed to have its own ideas. She made a decision then, and extended her hand before she could change her mind.

"I'm Umeko, by the way," she introduced herself, using her fake name with a genuine smile.

He gently shook her hand. "Kakashi."

"Kakashi-san, I'm absolutely starving, and I was just on my way to get dinner. Would you like to join me?" She almost hoped he would refuse. It would be much easier to just walk away and let the opportunity pass her by. But another, more stubborn part of her wanted to get to know Hatake Kakashi before they became completely estranged.

Kakashi considered the lady's proposal, weighing the benefits of sharing a meal with a pretty stranger against his generally anti-social nature. He had snuck out of the hospital that night hoping to find some interesting distraction; and Umeko did seem _very_ interesting. There was something unusual about her, but it didn't make him feel uneasy. _What are you hesitating for? _He asked himself. _Don't pretend you haven't already decided._

"I'd love to."


	5. The Blossom

At first they walked in silence, both trying to think of something to say. _God, this is worse than a first date, _Sakura thought to herself. She was paranoid any questions she asked would arouse suspicion, or that Kakashi would ask her a question she wouldn't know how to answer.

Eventually he spoke up. "So where are we headed?"

"It's a restaurant called The Blossom," she replied, "I haven't been there in a while, but it's fairly popular."

"The Blossom…" Kakashi scratched his mask-covered chin. "I think I've heard of it somewhere."

Sakura made a noncommittal noise. She knew she'd never mentioned it to him before, but he might have heard about the civilian bar owned by a retired ninja couple. It was something of a talking point in Konoha- which prided itself on its powerful shinobi- for two people to give up the lifestyle so completely.

"Actually, I think I must have been mistaken," Kakashi said as they finally reached the glowing bistro. "I would have remembered."

The entire outside wall was painted with cherry blossom trees so lifelike that without the bright red sign and the sound of music from within, it might have been a doorway standing in the middle of a forest. Wooden steps led up to a small apartment block and down to The Blossom itself, where the sounds of people blended with the smell of good food. Kakashi gestured downwards.

"After you."

The interior of the bar was mostly done in crisp greens and earthy browns. The jounin's eye went immediately to the far wall, where someone had painted a mural. It was another sakura tree; this time with a young kimono-clad woman standing under its boughs. She had a beautiful, serene expression and a hair colour that perfectly matched the blossoms falling around her. Despite the woman's beauty, the painting didn't have the same realism as the exterior façade. Kakashi concluded that the rose-haired maiden was probably some Spring goddess dreamed up in the artist's imagination rather than painted with a real-life model.

Sakura glanced at the mural too, but only to remind herself how much she hated it. It had been painted a year after her birth, the final touch to her mother's masterpiece restaurant. It was the woman Haruno Takara's pink-haired daughter was meant to grow into, but the artist had made a fatal mistake. The picture was too beautiful, too perfect. When Sakura grew up into a pretty -but ultimately normal- young girl, she felt like a failure. Of course her mother had meant well, but The Blossom's painted maiden was just too great an image to live up to. Unfortunately she was the only one who seemed to hate it, and so she had gone through life smiling and pretending it wasn't the source of all her childhood insecurities.

"Who are you two?"

The pair were cut off at the bottom of the stairs by a short woman with chestnut-brown hair and a bright red yukata. She examined them through a tiny pair of pince-nez glasses, eyes narrowed.

Sakura was surprised by her mother's behaviour. The former kunoichi was usually the most sociable and cheery person in town; the consummate hostess. She wondered what had happened to make her look so hostile and suspicious.

Kakashi stepped forward, adopting the polite, diplomatic persona he used when talking to wealthy clients. "My name's Hatake Kakashi and this is Umeko," he gestured to Sakura, who shifted uncomfortably. It was an odd feeling, being introduced to your own mother.

Mrs Haruno looked them up and down once more before finally relaxing. "Hatake Kakashi. Of course you are, so sorry. I'm Takara; welcome to The Blossom. Of course I should have recognised you immediately, but you can't be too careful, you know." She fussed with her glasses, taking less-than subtle glances at Kakashi's covered eye and dark mask.

"Sorry, but why can't you be too careful?" Kakashi asked, voicing Sakura's own unspoken question.

Takara sighed apologetically. "It's nothing personal. I've just been getting a lot of new patrons lately, and not all of them are as well-known as The Great Copy-nin. And to be honest, the money's not worth the stress. Most of them break more than they spend, fighting and carrying on." Her voice dropped to a whisper, so that Kakashi and Sakura had to lean forward to hear her. "Don't spread this around," she began, and Sakura almost smiled; her mother was a notorious gossip, and always began the juiciest news in the same way, "but I think it has something to do with my new lodger."

"You have a lodger?" Sakura blurted out before she could stop herself. The other two looked at her, and she blushed.

"Yes, Kenta's been staying in my daughter's old room for about a week now. For the most part he's been perfect; always pays his rent in advance, never does any direct damage. But the people he seems to attract haven't been so great." After a dramatic pause, she straightened back up and gave a cheerful grin. "But that's not your problem. You two kids are obviously here to enjoy yourself, not share in an old woman's misery." She grabbed Kakashi's wrist and practically dragged him further into the building. He glanced back at Sakura with an amused shrug, as she tried to keep up with them. If she hadn't been disguised, she would have been mortified at the way her mother was treating her old sensei. But as Umeko, it just seemed funny.

They passed tables of people, all of whom seemed to be mild-mannered regulars rather than menaces to society. Sakura glanced at each of their faces, until she noticed one she recognised. Ino's auburn-haired henge stared at her, open-mouthed. For a moment she thought her friend must have recognised her despite the effort she had put into her disguise. She was about to raise a hand in greeting until she realised why Ino was staring. From her perspective, a pretty stranger had just walked into a restaurant with Hatake Kakashi: elite jounin and rumoured womaniser. The Yamanaka girl was almost as big a gossip as Haruno Takara, and news of Kakashi's new lady-friend would generate a lot of interest in shinobi circles.

Sakura swallowed nervously. Just how much trouble had she gotten herself into? If her disguise were to fail her right now, in front of her old captain, her mother, her best friend and about fifty random onlookers, she would have to move to Suna to escape the humiliation. Kakashi would think she'd tricked him, Ino would think she had sought Kakashi out on purpose, and Kami-knew what her mother would think. The thought alone made her want to run from the building, but she knew she had a little longer before her chakra levels became too strained. Plus, she truly did want to talk with Kakashi; if only to confirm that he was as enigmatic with strangers as he was with his students.

Finally she and Kakashi were plunked down in a corner booth at the back that offered a good view of the rest of the bar.

"There you go, nice and intimate," Takara winked saucily, and Sakura might have died of embarrassment then and there, disguise or no. Kakashi must have noticed her discomfort, because he rolled his eyes behind the woman's back as if to say _"of course she _would _jump to _that _conclusion." _Sakura gave a small smile. At least Kakashi didn't have the wrong impression.

"Now, can I get you two kids anything to eat or drink?" her mother asked, pulling a notepad and pencil from the folds of her yukata.

Kakashi looked at Sakura expectantly. "I'll have a glass of water and a serving of pork buns, please," she said, and The Copy Nin smiled politely.

"I'll have the same."

That surprised Sakura, who hadn't expected him to order anything at all. She and her teammates had been trying for years to catch a glimpse of him eating, when he would presumably remove his mask. Was tonight the night it finally happened? The thought gave Sakura a weird thrill of anticipation, like reading the climax of a novel.

Their order was written down and the notepad returned. "If there's anything else you need, just ask for 'Takara,'" the woman told them, sliding the pencil behind her ear. Finally, they were alone.

"So this is The Blossom," Kakashi took in his surroundings with an appreciative look. "It's nice. I should come to this area more often."

"You mean you don't live around here?" Sakura asked, knowing full well that his apartment was on the other side of town. The fact that he had clearly snuck out of the hospital still irked her, and she hoped for a confession.

She was to be disappointed. "I live on the Northern edge of town, but I felt like doing something different tonight." He shrugged blithely, scratching the back of his head. "How about you? You mentioned you hadn't eaten here in a while. Too far to commute?"

"I used to live close to here, but then I moved a bit further away and started a new job," she told him, which wasn't technically a lie. "I kept meaning to come back, but I got kind of… distracted." She hadn't realised just how badly she had missed her old home until that night.

Kakashi nodded sympathetically. "I can relate. I used to know Konoha like the back of my hand, but with all the battles and reconstructions of recent years, not much is familiar to me anymore."

"I suppose that's why you came to this area tonight? To reorient yourself?"

Kakashi shrugged. "To be honest, I just wanted to get away for a while. I didn't really care where; I just let my feet carry me where they wished. I don't really spend much time in the village these days, so I decided to enjoy my free time."

Umeko tucked a long strand of hair behind her ear, her expression unreadable. "When I was a girl," she finally said, "I used to think being a ninja and travelling to all the different nations would be the greatest thing ever."

Kakashi smiled at the girl. "Don't get me wrong; the other nations _are_ beautiful. Each is completely different from the other, in terms of geography. You couldn't compare Sunagakure to Kirigakure, for example. Unfortunately, the sights you see as a ninja aren't the ones they put on their postcards."

Sakura watched her former sensei's one visible eye cloud over for a moment, and had the sudden desire to reach out to him. It was absurd- he was the most aloof man she'd ever known- but Sakura had spent several years working as a medic, giving support to the sick and the grieving. Compassion, she had found, was a hard thing to turn off. But she decided against it; from Kakashi's point of view she was a complete stranger, and even if he had known it was Sakura, their relationship had never allowed for something as intimate as the giving and receiving of comfort.

Haruno Takara chose that moment to appear, steaming trays in hand. "Hope I'm not interrupting," she chirped, placing their meals before them.

"Not at all," Kakashi replied politely. "We were only talking. You're welcome to pull up a seat and join us if you wish." He wanted to make it clear to Umeko that he wasn't trying to use her vulnerable state to his advantage; she shouldn't feel like he was expecting anything just for saving her.

Takara flapped her hand dismissively. "Oh, don't be silly! You young things don't want me interrupting your date! Besides, I have a business that needs running."

"It's not a d-" Sakura began, but fell silent as her mother turned to glare at the stranger that had just entered the restaurant.

"Kenta…" the woman breathed, and Sakura and Kakashi shared a glance.

"That's your lodger?" Kakashi asked, peering between the fern fronds. The man stood at around 5'7", with curly grey-brown hair that made him look older than he seemed. He walked to the bar and struck up a conversation with the bartender, who poured him a glass of cold tea.

"He doesn't drink, you see," Takara told them, "just drinks tea, so that if anyone does get rowdy and start problems, he can always play innocent."

"Why not just kick him out, if he's concerning you so much?" Sakura asked, trying to sound like an objective stranger and not like the woman's daughter.

Takara's eyebrows knit together briefly. "Oh, I couldn't do that," she said, "he really hasn't done anything wrong. I'm just being paranoid, I suppose. It's probably like this with everyone's first lodger."

"I guess…" Sakura didn't trust the man either, but that might just have been because he was staying in her old room. She didn't begrudge her parents trying to make a little extra money, but it still felt a little odd to think of this man sleeping in her bed.

"In any case, it's not for you two to worry yourselves over," Takara told them, gliding away back to the bar. The lodger glanced up at her approach, and his eyes travelled to the corner of the room she had come from. They rested briefly on the pair, who stared back unabashedly. After a moment, Kenta turned back to his drink and Kakashi turned to his dinner partner.

"I guess only time will tell if he's a homicidal maniac," he commented, and Umeko nodded, smiling.

"Quite right. In any case, I'm more interested in ninjas who save young ladies from bands of thugs. Did I mention how grateful I was about that?"

The jounin scratched the back of his head modestly. "Really, it was nothing. Any shinobi would have done the same. Especially for a pretty girl." The last part had slipped out accidentally, and he immediately felt guilty. Umeko _was _a pretty girl, but it was wrong to flirt with someone who felt like they owed you something. "Sorry. Not that I had any intentions or expectations about anything, I just-"

But she cut him off with a soft chuckle. "It's fine, I know you're a good guy. Call it 'intuition.' Besides," she added, "_I_ invited _you _to dinner, and you don't suspect _me _of any ulterior motives, do you?"

Sakura was surprising herself with how easy it was to talk like this. Umeko wasn't shy or naïve. She said and did things the real Sakura never would, especially not to her former teacher. But it was a dangerous game to play when people's feelings were potentially at stake. It felt like innocent banter, and she was confident Kakashi was 'experienced' enough to see it that way. But if Umeko somehow did cause her former captain pain, she silently swore she would transfer to Suna and never return.

Kakashi laughed, and Sakura was surprised at how genuine it sounded. He had never really done more than smile in her presence before, so his sudden mirth made him seem like a stranger. She realised it was because he looked younger this way. Like the young man he never had the opportunity to be.

"No, I don't suspect you," he told her, still smiling. "But if you really want to assure me your motives in inviting me to dinner were pure, we should probably start eating. Besides, I really don't want you going into shock from an empty stomach."

Sakura remembered the pork buns she had been looking forward to all evening, and picked up her chopsticks with enthusiasm. Kakashi watched with bemusement as the girl poked a small hole in the top of her bun, carefully widening the tear until it formed a perfect cross. With near-surgical precision she peeled the flaps of dough back, revealing the untouched filling.

"What in the Hokage's name are you doing? He finally asked, as Umeko began removing the filling and placing it to one side. So far she hadn't taken a single bite.

"Trust me, it tastes even better when you do it like this," Sakura replied, continuing with her strange ritual. She had done it this way for years, and it really did make the dumplings special.

"I can't imagine how," Kakashi still watched bemusedly, his own dumplings untouched.

"I guess when I do it like this, I feel like I've earned it," she shrugged, "so getting to eat it is kind of like my reward." Filling sitting to one side of her plate, she picked up the empty dough and held it gently between her chopsticks. "This is the important bit," she told him.

With a nimble flick of her wrist, Umeko was able to turn the entire dumpling shell inside out without as much as a tear. It sat perfectly, exactly like it had before but with the sticky part on the outside and the clean side within. As he watched, she refilled it with the meat and, obviously satisfied with her efforts, took a large bite.

"Nothing better in this world," she sighed contentedly, finishing the dumpling in two more bites and beginning her operation on the next one.

Kakashi had to admit, Umeko was an interesting girl. He couldn't decide if she was warmly familiar or pleasantly surprising. She was an enigma, and it fascinated him. "Like this?" he asked her, picking up his own chopsticks and attempting to mimic her movements. He lacked her precision, and his cuts were nowhere as neat as hers, but it was a decent first attempt.

She told him so. "Not bad at all. I guess being a ninja would give you some pretty good hand-eye coordination. Even when one of your eyes is covered like that."

Kakashi's hand unconsciously went to his sharingan, hidden beneath a layer of gauze with his forehead-protector over the top. "You should see me with both eyes uncovered," he said, and Sakura couldn't quite read his tone. Playful? Wistful?

She decided to press him, but gently. She wanted to know how he felt about his recent trauma, but he didn't seem able to talk to Haruno Sakura. If he felt more comfortable around Umeko, then that would be the next best thing.

"I'd like that. Only being able to see a quarter of your face does make it hard to know if my conversation is boring you. Why cover your face like that?"

Kakashi leaned back in his chair, trying to think of a casual way to change the subject. Conversations usually turned to his mask and sharingan, and usually he could brush it off with a stupid lie. But he didn't feel like playing the absent-minded professor or the cold-blooded killer or any of his many roles tonight. He was enjoying being Kakashi too much.

Just as the pause was getting uncomfortably long, something over Kakashi's shoulder seemed to distract Umeko. "Look, others have joined the lodger."

It was true. Two more men had entered the bar and made a beeline for Kenta. He greeted them in a casual way, and then began talking in a voice too quiet to be heard over the rabble. After a moment, the taller of the two men swung around in his seat to scan the area of the room where Kakashi and Sakura were sitting. Kenta smacked the man's arm and the other one laughed. After that they focused on nothing but their drinks.

"That was strange," Sakura commented, frowning, "do you think they were talking about us?"

"No way to know, but if ninjas are as uncommon a sight as Takara said, they might just have been curious." Kakashi sounded apathetic but in reality he had no doubt they had been the subject of their conversation. He just didn't know why.

Sakura was similarly suspicious, but kept it to herself. Civilian women weren't supposed to concern themselves with shady characters. "You're probably right. Best to just forget about it." She smiled and he seemed to return it beneath his mask.

"Good idea. Besides, I'm far too interested in trying the best dumplings in Konoha." He picked up his reassembled pork bun and extended his free hand to tug down the top of his mask. People had caught glimpses of his face before, especially while he ate. Usually he liked to deny the people particularly invested in the mystery, like his former students. But he wanted to see Umeko's reaction. Would she blush? Would she laugh? Would she be disappointed?

Sakura realised what was about to happen as Kakashi's fingers slid beneath the top of the fabric. Was he seriously going to show her, just like that? Would she be the first of her teammates to solve the riddle of their old captain's face? Even when hospitalised he had been able to elude her, as though he wove some illusion similar to Tsunade's youthful appearance, that prevented any opportunity to glimpse the real Kakashi. The girl's heart leapt into her throat with excitement, surprise and guilt, for it felt a bit like a trick. As her pulse fluttered her chakra did the same, and she became aware of just how low her levels had gotten in the space of the evening. She winced as she fought to maintain control over her genjutsu.

Kakashi paused, watching Umeko with concern as her eyes narrowed in concentration.

"Are you alright?"

"Fine," she gasped, before seeming to remember herself. "I'm fine," she repeated more convincingly, "I just realised I have to go. Sorry." She stood up and was halfway to the exit before Kakashi could leave enough cash on the table to cover their food and follow her. The trio at the bar watched them leave.

"Hey, are you sure you're okay?"

Sakura realised Kakashi was calling to her from the doorway, and glanced over her shoulder to make sure there was still enough distance for her to escape. She couldn't change here, in front of him.

"I'm fine, I just have to go. I'm sorry, really. I did have fun."

"Would you like to do this again sometime?" The question caught Sakura off guard, and as she turned back to Kakashi she could tell he was just as surprised at himself for asking it. "I mean, I'd like to actually finish a meal with you at some point. Besides, you left without paying, so you kind of owe me. Same time tomorrow night, at the bridge?"

Sakura was glad it was dark, because she could feel her genjutsu rippling slightly from the conflicting emotions swirling within her. Had Kakashi just asked her on a proper date?

She span on her heel and retreated further into the darkness of the street, quickly becoming lost in the crowd. But before she disappeared completely, Kakashi could hear her softly call back to him.

"Maybe."


	6. Cinderella

"I have to talk to you."

Ino blinked sleepily at the pink-haired girl on her doorstep. "Forehead, you know I like to sleep late on my days off. I would have thought you'd be doing the same, given your recent fatigue-related near-death experience."

"This is important," Sakura said, squeezing past Ino into her tiny apartment. Ino saw her friend's expression and didn't protest.

"Okay, what's wrong?"

"I messed up," she groaned, running a restless hand through her rosy hair. "I've done something so unfathomably bad I'm not even sure how I got to this point."

"Yikes," Ino grimaced in sympathy, "Better start from the start then."

Sitting down, Sakura took a deep breath as Ino watched expectantly. "So I made a civilian henge last night, and went to The Blossom."

"Hey, me too!" Ino said, suddenly perking up. "Did you see my henge? What did yours look like? Ooh, and did you see the woman Kakashi walked in with? Seems he's made a speedy recovery."

Sakura swallowed nervously. "Well the thing is… I _was_ the woman Kakashi walked in with."

Her best friend stared in confusion for a moment, before suddenly bursting into laughter. "Sakura, the idea of pretending to be a civilian is to have _less _drama in your life."

"It was a mistake," Sakura defended, "it's not like I planned to meet my technically still-hospitalised captain down a dark alley while pretending to be a helpless civilian woman."

"Kami, when you make a mistake you make it big, huh?" Ino grinned. "Now explain exactly how you managed all of this..."

Ino's coffee cup had been poised in midair en route to her lips almost the entire time Sakura had been relating her predicament. Now it was placed firmly on the table.

"Well, you're pretty much fucked, aren't you?"

"Thanks," Sakura grumbled, "I knew you'd be able to shed some fresh light on the subject."

"Honestly I'm not sure what you expected me to tell you. You chose to invite him to dinner, and now he's going to expect to see Umeko again tonight."

"I shouldn't go."

"Then why didn't you tell him that last night, hmm?" Ino gave Sakura a knowing look that always irritated Sakura.

"I don't know! I wasn't myself- literally. Oh Kami, if he _ever_ finds out about this, I'm leaving the country."

"Relax Billboard, it's not going to come to that," Ino assured her, you just need to meet him tonight as Umeko and explain that you can't ever see him again."

Sakura wasn't convinced it would be as easy as Ino made it sound, but was willing enough to try.

"I suppose so. He probably won't even remember me- Umeko- after long. I think he only asked to meet again tonight because he's bored cooped up in the hospital all day." It was stupid to think it was anything more than that. Kakashi probably would have accepted an invitation to dinner whether she was Umeko or not. It was only her concern for Kakashi and the lingering remnants of their former teacher-student relationship that made her feel so guilty.

"Thanks for the coffee, Ino- and for not assuming I had dinner with Kakashi because of anything… anything sinister."

"If you mean that I might have assumed you fancied him, I'd hardly describe such a thing as 'sinister'," Ino told her as she collected their cups. "You're not his student anymore. You're both adults."

Sakura chose to ignore her.

The sterile smell of disinfectant was actually quite comforting to the green-eyed medic. The hospital might have recently been her place of confinement, but it was also her place of work, the place she felt confident and powerful. She felt no uneasiness walking its halls.

"Haruno Sakura, do you even know the _meaning _of rest?" The thunderous voice of the Fifth Hokage appearing from a closed-off corridor stopped Sakura in her tracks.

"Shishou," she said meekly, "I'm not working. I'm just visiting today."

Tsunade snorted in disbelief. "I assume you're talking about Kakashi, in which case it's essentially work for you."

Sakura rather resented her mentor's implication. She had become a medic to protect her loved ones; yet she knew it wasn't always possible to save them all. But she _had _been able to save Kakashi, so why was Tsunade treating it as such a crime? Nevertheless she remained respectfully silent.

"Honestly Tsunade-sama, I'm just calling in for a minute because I promised I would. I just want to make sure he's okay." _And see if he confesses to sneaking out last night._

Tsunade relaxed slightly. "As long as you don't use your chakra to examine him. He actually seems to have perked up today. Which is good, because something's come up and I don't know how he'll react to what I tell him."

Sakura frowned. "Why? What's happened?"

Tsunade glanced back at the closed-off corridor. "You'll find out anyway sooner or later. In fact, if you hadn't gotten yourself removed from active service you'd probably be working on it as we speak." She paused for a moment. "Hyuuga Kensuke, a respected elder of the Hyuuga clan, is dying."

Sakura was saddened to hear that, especially for Hinata's sake, who would soon be mourning a relative. But what did that have to do with Kakashi?

"I don't understand, Tsunade-sama. Did Kakashi know him?"

"No but if he agrees to it, he may share a deeper connection than he ever expected."

It took a moment for Sakura to realise what she meant. "You mean to transplant the byakugan's optic chakra vessel to Kakashi?"

"After the latest overexertion, it seems the single chakra vessel may be unable to continue unassisted. Hence, we have discussed the possibility of transplant with Kensuke-dono." Tsunade's face seemed rather grave considering this was excellent news. "All that remains is to discuss it with Kakashi."

"Let me tell him."

Tsunade's eyes half-closed in contemplation. On the one hand, she wasn't sure what would happen if Sakura and Kakashi spent any more time together. Sakura had ignored the medic's code for the masked jounin before, and had almost wasted her young life for his. But all the same, Sakura was maybe the only person whose opinion Kakashi might seriously consider. If Tsunade herself told him, he might feign nonchalant acceptance of his commanding officer's wishes, even if he was truly concerned about the procedure and how it would change Rin and Obito's gift. Sakura's medical opinion was above reproach, as Kakashi well knew. But her personal opinion would be more valuable, for their relationship had the potential to be gentler, with less need to pretend for the sake of appearance. Perhaps Sakura could give Kakashi something the Hokage couldn't.

"Very well. But remember that the decision is Kakashi's and Kakashi's alone. If he refuses, that's his prerogative."

Sakura frowned. "Why would he refuse? The operation is unprecedented, but shouldn't be too risky."

"He may have his reasons to hesitate," Tsunade told her.

Sakura wasn't exactly sure what she meant by that, but the ghost of a recollection flickered at the edge of her mind. Of course she knew how Kakashi felt about the Sharingan; it was why she'd risked so much to protect it. Could it be more than respect for a valuable weapon? It was obvious enough that the Sharingan had belonged to a now-deceased Uchiha. Just how had it fallen into Kakashi's possession?

Kakashi did indeed seem in better spirits amongst the lifeless white of his sickbed than he had on the day of Sakura's discharge. He was propped up on a pillow, and seemed to have been halfway through a bowl of soup when she entered; though naturally he wouldn't resume it in her presence.

"So you came back after all," he said by way of greeting.

Sakura huffed. "I said I would, didn't I?"

The jounin held out his hand, and Sakura stared at it uncomprehendingly.

"Well?" he said expectantly, "haven't you brought me Icha-Icha to help pass the hours of my imprisonment in relative solace? Isn't that why you're here?"

Sakura blushed. "Actually I forgot about that; I just came to see how you were doing."

"Oh. That's… nice of you."

Sakura could tell Kakashi was a little embarrassed by her caring, so she busied herself with his file, adopting her medic-nin attitude. "Besides, you'll probably be discharged as early as tomorrow at this stage. So hopefully you haven't been giving the orderlies trouble, trying to sneak out or anything," she said, watching him carefully for any indications of guilt.

She was disappointed. "You know me Sakura," Kakashi replied blandly. "I've been a model patient. Ask anyone."

Sakura fought the urge to glare at him. "Well that's just great, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi seemed to be grinning beneath his mask. "Honestly, you should just tell them to discharge me now. I feel fine, so what's one more night going to change? Besides: I've got a date tonight."

Sakura almost dropped his file. How casually he said it! She knew Kakashi was only so cavalier because he was confident she'd assume he was lying anyway. But a part of her was still a little paranoid he was teasing her; that he knew everything and was just waiting for her to confess.

"That's… highly unlikely, considering you've been cooped up here being a model patient. Who is this mystery date?"

"Cinderella," he replied, clearly pleased with his response.

Sakura's eye twitched. He was infuriating, and yet part of her was secretly flattered he had called it a 'date'; even if he thought he was having it with someone else.

"Right. Well, I'm afraid you'll just have to miss it. I'm sure Cinderella will understand." Time to change the subject. "But I do have some good news for you: Tsunade just told me that there's a terminally-ill Hyuuga who has agreed to donate an optic chakra vessel when he eventually passes."

Kakashi stared at her for so long she began to wonder if he understood the implications of such news.

"This would mean you'd have a fully-functioning optic chakra system for the first time. After the operation your sharingan will work better than ever!"

"But you'd have to operate on my sharingan," Kakashi said. His expression continued to reveal nothing.

"Tsunade's working on making it as safe as possible for you and the sharingan," she assured him. "It will work."

"But the sharingan will be changed," Kakashi said. "It will work differently to how it does now."

"But only in a good way. Like I said, it'll be improved. No more overexertion, and you might even be able to activate it manually rather than have it constantly in use."

Kakashi fell into silence, and Sakura began to see why Tsunade had discouraged her from assuming he would accept. She felt another unexpected twinge of angst, like she was a radio picking up someone else's feelings. It seemed there was indeed more to the sharingan than met the eye.

"Well you don't have to decide anything immediately. But I hope you do consider just how much this would improve your health."

Kakashi made a non-committal noise, and Sakura made her excuses to leave. She had a lot to think about before tonight.


End file.
